Indonesia landslide kills 8 villagers; 9 missing

A landslide triggered by torrential rain killed at least eight people and left nine others missing on Indonesia's main island of Java, an official said Monday.

Nine houses were buried when mud gushed down from surrounding hills just after dawn Monday in Cililin village in West Bandung district.

Sigit Udjwalaprana of the local Disaster Mitigation Agency said rescuers dug up the bodies of a father and his 7-year-old son embracing each other, just hours before the search was halted due to darkness.

The dead included five children, Sutopo Purwo Nugroho of the national disaster agency said.

Sigit said a lack of equipment hampered the 300 police, soldiers and residents who used their hands, shovels and hoes to search through the debris for the missing.

Seasonal downpours cause dozens of landslides and flash floods each year in Indonesia, a vast chain of 17,000 islands where millions of people live in mountainous areas or near fertile flood plains.

The national disaster agency said 83 people have died in 53 earlier landslides this year in Indonesia.

Villagers use hoes as they search for victims of a landslide that hit a village in Cililin, West Java, Indonesia, Monday, March 25, 2013. Rescuers pulled out six bodies, including four children after the landslide triggered by torrential rain. (AP Photo)